Life

Protopresbyter George Dion Dragas, PhD, DD (Hon.), is Professor of Patrology at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, Massachusetts. He was born in Athens, Greece, where he received his early education and studied science. He studied theology at Edinburgh University (BD) under the renowned Scots theologian and patrologist, Thomas F. Torrance, with whom he was for many years associated in academic and ecumenical work. He earned his ThM at Princeton Theological Seminary, where he studied briefly under Protopresbyter Georges V. Florovsky. He finished his PhD at Durham University, England; his dissertation, entitled Athanasius contra Apollinarem, was published in 1985 with an introduction by Thomas Torrance. Dragas was ordained to the Holy Priesthood by Archbishop Methodios Fouyas of Thyateira and Great Britain.

Fr. Dragas taught patristics at Durham University, England, from 1974-1995. Since 1995, he has been teaching at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline. At present, he is also a Visiting Professor at Université de Sherbrooke in Québec, Canada.

He is a specialist on St. Athanasius and the Alexandrian theologians and is responsible for updating with critical introductions the Athens reprint of Migne's Patrologia Graeca (about 80 volumes published so far). He is also the General Editor of the Patristic and Ecclesiastical Texts and Translations and the Orthodox Theological Library series published by the Orthodox Research Institute. He is a member of the Academie Internationale des Science Religieuses (Brussels). In 2000, the Faculty of Theology of the St. Clement National University of Sofia, Bulgaria, conferred on him the degree of Doctor of Divinity (DD) honoris causa. In 2005, the Department of Pastoral and Social Theology of the Faculty of Theology of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki conferred on him the degree of Doctor of Theology (ThD) honoris causa. In 2007, the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki awarded him the Aristeion award, the university's highest award for academic research and achievement. Fr. Dragas has also been highly active in ecumenical affairs, serving as a theological representative of various Orthodox patriarchates in the international Orthodox/Reformed, Orthodox/Anglican, Orthodox/Lutheran and Orthodox/Oriental Orthodox dialogues. In 1992, he was instrumental in drafting together with T.F. Torrance the Orthodox-Reformed "Agreed Statement on the Holy Trinity."